What We Never Had

by Zach Wyner

Meet Josh, a paragon for the modern post collegiate. He has a job with no upward path, and a dysfunctional relationship with his ex. Through his work with teenagers, he begins to find definition through the haze, gradually discovering purpose and a measure of self-respect. After two shiftless friends take up residence in his apartment, using his couch as a podium to rail against the world, he takes stock of who he is versus who he wants to be. And when his troubled ex finds herself in real danger, Josh can't resist the allure of playing the savior, but now he may have a little wisdom on his side.

What We Never Had, a coming-of-age story about a lost generation struggling to come of age, is at once hilarious and moving, timely and wise. Wyner finds both the comedy and the drama inherent in his young narrator’s attempt to create an adult life for himself, bringing it to the page in language that is perceptive, fresh and vivid.

— Malena Watrous, author of If You Follow Me

Zach Wyner is a writer and teacher who works with incarcerated youth in the San Francisco Bay Area. He received an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of San Francisco and lives in Oakland with his wife, stepdaughter, and infant son.